Cold homes need more than warm words, argues Knauf

Published: 23 April, 2015

As each political party broadcasts its Manifesto in the approach to the General Election, Knauf Insulation has reflected on the announcements so far.

The company has strongly welcomed the clear emphasis placed upon an ambitious, whole-house approach to tackling the cold homes crisis set out by the Liberal Democrats in their Manifesto. It has also warmly received ongoing commitments by both the Liberal Democrats and the Labour Party to ensure that energy efficiency is a national infrastructure priority if either party forms a part of the next government.

However, Knauf observed that at the Manifesto stage, only the Liberal Democrats indicate they would use infrastructure capital spending to part-fund a large-scale renovation programme.

Meanwhile, the Conservative Manifesto notes the needs faced by millions of families, but offers a comparatively low level of ambition according to Knauf, pledging insulation support for only 1m homes over the next five years. This is an 80% drop in the number of homes helped compared to the 2010 to 2015 period – figures that include measures delivered in current underperforming schemes ECO and Green Deal.

John Sinfield (pictured), managing director of Knauf Insulation Northern Europe, said: “Using less energy is an easy win for the UK economy, but the next six months may make or break this opportunity. We look forward to working with the next government to deliver growth and a clear programme for warm homes that can make this happen.”

Finally, while the challenges of setting out the ambition for the next parliament term begin in May, a more immediate problem must also be addressed: the current ECO term, due to end in 2017, is likely to be complete much earlier, says Knauf. Without clear action early in the next parliament, vulnerable people will not continue to receive help throughout 2016.

The National Insulation Association (NIA) has shared its surprise and concern with the Committee on Climate Change, following reports that the government intends to build 400,000 new homes in the next few years, which may have to be retro-fitted with insulation and other energy saving measures to meet the UK’s carbon saving targets.

The wider energy efficiency industry can only be confused by the recent actions of the government, particularly given that its removal of the 2016 zero carbon homes target might have zero effect on the ‘productivity’ it hopes to see resulting from its latest plan.

A report by the Federation of Master Builders, highlighting the fact that the shortage of construction workers has hit its worst ever levels, is the latest sign that offsite housing volumes must be increased to help tackle the housing crisis.

The London Assembly’s proposal to focus on building offsite manufactured homes to help it deliver the 50,000 new dwellings it needs every year has been welcomed by pan European insulation specialist Actis.